Mother for a year
by HKGlenstid
Summary: Things weren't suppose to happen this way. A vacation for a year. Link mistaken as Zelda's husband. And the whole village of Ordon mistaken belief that the baby she cradles is hers. How could this year get any worse? slight AU. Series of oneshots.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I wish I owned Legend of Zelda, but sadly I don't, nor do I have the brains to come up with it's amazing story and plot.**

* * *

 **Prologue**

"Zelda why don't you go on a vacation?"

Such a simple offer brought confusion to Zelda. Having her father just pass away, she was the only one to take her father's place. How could she just take a vacation?

The young monarch was currently in her spacious office, working hard for the majority of the day, skipping lunch in the process. She was working at her desk, a giant window right behind her showing a grand view of Castletown.

Her usual bright eyes were replaced with bags underneath, and the barely noticeable red lines in the white of her eyes. She was still in her blue nightgown, not bothering to change to proper attire for the day. She was slightly paler than normal as well, that much was for certain, and seeing her like this crushed Impa.

"I beg your pardon Impa?" Zelda started. "I am too busy to even start thinking of all the things. We have to plan the ceremony where I am crowned, finish the legalities of the new taxes-"

"I am well aware of what must be done," Impa interrupted. "But you must worry about your health as well. A kingdom can only be run by one that is healthy."

"I am fine Impa," Zelda protested.

"You were coughing out blood only last week."

"It's a minor set back! The people need me!"

"The people can wait!"

The older woman rarely raised her voice. Whenever she did, Zelda would always become silent, and now was no exception. There was an awkward silence between the two, before Impa walked behind Zelda and embraced her.

Impa sighed, hating the stubbornness that the princess had. Much like her late father, Zelda was too hard working, enough to not care about her own health.

"Since you have yet to come of age," Impa started, tapping her chin thoughtfully. "Legally as your guardian I have the right to dismiss you from your work until your coronation."

Zelda's eyes widened, before dropping her quill.

"Impa ple-"

"Which is why," Impa interrupted. "I hereby dismiss you from your duties until your coronation. Fear not princess, for I will see to the plans for the ceremony, you merely need to arrive back home for your birthday next year."

Zelda stayed silent, slumping her shoulders, defenseless and at a loss.

"Then all the work that my father left behind?"

"I'm not saying don't do it," Impa answered, stepping back from the embrace and looking out the window. "I'm saying, take a well deserved break."

"For a year," Zelda muttered under her breath.

"A _well deserved_ break."

There was another silence between the two of them, before Impa was lost in thought again.

"That reminds me, you are going to need an escort," the sheikah woman stated, tapping her chin once more, before a smile crept onto her face. "Take your personal guard with you. He's traveled a lot and knows Hyrule well. Surely he would be a good escort."

"You mean Link?" Zelda asked.

"Is there another personal guard you can think off?" Impa teased, noticing that the princess's face had reddened slightly in embarrassment.

"I understand…I don't actually have a say in this matter do I?"

Impa smirked as she shook her head.

* * *

 _'_ _That's how it had started. So how…how in Naryu's name did it become like this?'_

Zelda and Link were currently in Faron woods, after a day's journey on Epona, the two were under the pretense of a couple. They were both young, and if Zelda had used her own horse, they would have been found out immediately, so this was the most believable story.

They were both dressed out of their normal attire, with Zelda in a common blue dress and brown cloak covering her, while Link had a simple white shirt and brown pants, his sword however was still strapped to his back. Zelda had her rapier by her side as well, since she had insisted as it wasn't too uncommon for a woman to have her own weapon.

The two 'lovers' finally agreed on a destination, being Ordon as it was Link's hometown, and a peaceful place to rest according to the knight in question.

Traveling through Faron woods, the two came across the sound of a baby crying.

Which was the current situation at hand.

The two had gotten off Epona, and found the baby wrapped in cloth held tightly in the arms of their dead mother.

"Bandits," Link had said, judging by the conditions on the mothers clothing as it was definitely slashed by a blade. "We should leave, no doubt the bandits have horses. Since the mother ran here on foot, the cries of the baby would no doubt have reached them."

Zelda nodded, and the two quickly ran back to Epona, with Zelda in front, cradling the crying child. Link looked back into the woods once more, before urging Epona into a quick gallop.

It wasn't long before an arrow had been shot. Link forcefully lowered Zelda's head, as he scanned the forest above.

He cursed.

"Epona can't out run them," Link stated. "Not when she is carrying the luggage and us. I'll lead them on a diversion somehow…there!"

Link pointed at one of the river streams, stopping Epona.

"Your highness take the baby and quickly dive into the stream. It leads right to Ordon."

"I beg your pardon?" Zelda hissed. "I'm the princess. I do not do this sort of thing."

"Right," Link stated. "I advise you to consider taking the stream towards Ordon for your personal safety in case they block the roads up ahead, unless you want to die by bandits. Which is perfectly fine for the people of Hyrule to lose their new monarch before she is crowned. Any questions?"

Zelda muttered some unroyal like curses under her breath, as she clumsily got off Epona, careful not to hurt the baby in her arms.

"I'm not forgetting your rudeness Link," Zelda glared.

"Nor do I ask you too," Link smirked, which disappeared almost immediately. "Now move along."

He looked back across his shoulder, turning Epona around. He galloped back towards the direction of the bandits withdrawing his blade. Seeing no option, Zelda unstrapped the rapier from her waist, holding it with her left, while cradling the baby with her right.

She leapt into the river stream hissing at the cold water.

Together with the child, she let the river push her along. Now how should she stop the baby from crying? She tried rocking, though it was difficult when trying to stay afloat. Despite Zelda's best attempts at cooing the baby, it refused to quieten it's cries. What could she do? She has no experience with these kinds of things.

"Did you hear that?"

Zelda gasped, clamping her hand gently around the baby's mouth. The cries were muffled, but nonetheless the baby cries were still loud. Loud enough for whoever it was to hear.

Suddenly a looming figure appeared above her. Judging by their torn clothing and weapons by their sides, Zelda immediately came to the conclusion that they were bandits. She kicked against the water, and started swimming away.

"She saw you idiot. Kill her!"

Zelda dared not look back, focusing only on getting the child to safety. Following the stream, there was a shallow dropped, and Zelda tumbled off and into deeper water. Not expecting that, she became totally drenched and her wet hair began to cloud her vision.

She could hear the sounds of the bandits closing in on her. She desperately swam, and she couldn't hear the bandit's voices anymore. She smiled. She was losing the bandits. Then a sudden sharp pain entered her shoulder. She cried out, as she gently placed her hand on it, feeling the wooden shaft of an arrow.

Zelda couldn't help but release her rapier from the pain. She cursed, but decided to keep swimming. But with her left arm in pain, and cradling the child in her other, the current became stronger. The water's caused Zelda to crash against a rock, smacking her head on the hard surface. She became tired and drowsy, as she desperate tried to stay afloat for the baby's sake. But it wasn't long before the world slowly caved in and turned black.

* * *

The village of Ordon was a peaceful one. Outside a house on the outskirts of the village was Collin, using a wooden sword on one of the training dummies. Everyday he would use the dummies, as if waiting for Link to come home. He missed the older boy, as it was like he had an older brother that looked after him and played with him.

He wondered if Link was well, if he had found a new home or maybe if he had found someone to life with for the rest of his life.

The day was getting darker as the sun was setting, and Collin called it a day. Walking back towards the village, he came across the river, seeing a limp body floating gently across it. An arrow was embedded in her left shoulder, and in her other arm there was a baby crying.

Collin's eyes widened. He took a step back, before running to his parents house.

"DAD! THERE'S A DEAD BODY IN THE RIVER!"


	2. Girls are weird

**A/N: Sorry I have been busy. I originally had a full story for this fic, but I realised that I won't spend enough time for it. To make up for it, it'll be a series of light hearted one shots, so you can quit reading whenever you want. Anyway, I didn't think this would get as much attention as it did, so please stop pming me to continue. I'm sorry, but I'll do it at my own pace thank you very much. Without further ado-**

* * *

 **Girls are weird**

On a grassy hill near the village of Ordon. Two friends were cloud watching with pure boredom.

"Girls are weird," Talo stated, looking up at the blue sky. His head was rested on his arms, as he lay on the grass, cloud watching.

"What makes you say that?" Collin asked, looking equally as bored as his friend.

"Well, none of them make sense," Talo answered.

"How so?"

There was a brief silence as Talo shut his eyes to think about it. The seconds grew into what seemed like hours, before Talo, opened his eyes once more.

"They just are," he said. "Like, Ilia, she goes around as being modest and kind, yet she dresses up all the time to look pretty."

"Girls like to look pretty…"

"What about Beth? She loves all the attention she can get, yet when we play with her, she just all of a sudden hates us."

"Girls don't play with swords…"

Talo tsked, obviously not convinced, as he sat up, crossing his arms defiantly.

"You're no fun Collin," he stated, standing up from his spot.

"Where are you going?"

"Going to play a prank on someone. Probably Ilia again or something. Or maybe that Zelda lady! Speaking of which, seen any good spiders that I can use this time?"

"N-No."

Talo tsked again, leaving the grassy hill. Collin sighed, watching his only male friend walk down towards the village. He stood up from his spot and followed Talo.

* * *

"I'm back mum," Collin called out, slipping off his sandals at the front entrance.

Inside, a young woman stared back at the young boy, a baby cradle in her arms.

"Welcome back Collin," Zelda said, her voice soothing to Collin's ears. "Your mother is out at the moment with your father."

"Oh okay…"

The young boy looked at the baby cradled in the young mother's arms. Then back at the beautiful face of Zelda. He remembered the previous week, when she showed up all of a sudden in the lake, bleeding from an arrow wound. The young mother Zelda, and her child Hylia. The bandit problem was becoming even worse, and he wasn't sure if his father was in peak condition anymore.

What would have happened if she wasn't found? Would she have died?

"Is there something on my face?" Zelda asked.

"U-Uh no, I was just thinking of something."

"I see," Zelda said, giving a gentle smile. "Well I'm going to get some fresh air with Hylia. Do you want to accompany me?"

Collin shook his head.

"I'll wait for my parents to come back. Dad would probably want to do some basic sword training with me."

"Alright, I'll be off then."

As Zelda left the house, Collin started to remember the conversation that he had with Talo.

 _Girls are weird._

Was Zelda weird as well? Surely not, she was kind, beautiful, and seemed to get along with everyone. She was modest like Ilia, but didn't flaunt her beauty. She accepted attention from others like Beth, but didn't cave into it. Maybe…just maybe, Zelda could prove to Talo, that not all girls were weird. The young boy clenched his fist in determination, no doubt was left in his mind. He will prove that Zelda, was normal.

* * *

The curious boy had followed the young woman for the majority of the afternoon, desperate to see if she was weird in anyway. She hadn't shown any signs of being weird. It was only after a good walk, he had followed Zelda to Ordon Spring, where he was now watching her…stand in the spring doing nothing. She just stood there, baby in her arms, staring at the cascading water flowing from the rocks.

Was this weird? She could be just enjoying the water around her feet. Five minutes passed, and nothing happened. Ten minutes soon became half an hour, and Collin was starting to get bored. What was Zelda doing?

He was starting to doze off, just watching Zelda stand there, until it happened. The unspeakable, the unthinkable, the horror itself.

A rock sailed through the air and knocked on Zelda's head, causing her to stumble back a bit.

Collin's jaw dropped from the suddenness of it, before he slowly turned his head to the culprit, seeing a familiar sight of a monkey. Those pests! Collin felt the need to step in and teach the monkey a lesson, but it was this moment that the young boy would never forget.

After Zelda recovered from her stumble, she crouched down, and grabbed the rock that was thrown at her. She turned and looked towards the monkey, her back towards Collin. The monkey was hysterical, as Zelda pulled back her arm, and let loose the rock.

It sailed, and Collin swore it glowed, before it erupted into a massive explosion. The hysterical laughter disappeared, and all that was left was an eerie silence, and some smoke from the explosion. Collin's lip trembled as he slowly rose to his feet. He took a step back, only to reveal his location from a twig snapping. He clamped his hand around his mouth as he forced himself not to whimper, as Zelda turned to face his direction, her eyes, angered like the devil was staring right into his soul right now. Following his instincts, he ran as fast as he could to the only place he could. Collin had to warn him, before it was too late.

He ran into town, ignoring the look of surprise on the other villager's face, before arriving at his destination, pounding on the door.

"Open up! It's an emergency!"

There was the sound of feet shuffling towards the door, before the door opened, revealing a yawning Talo.

"What do you want Collin? I was taking a nap."

"Talo, you can't play a prank on Miss Zelda," Collin said fearfully.

Talo raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"How come?"

"Because…girls are scary."


	3. Baby steps

**Baby steps**

A sharp cry rings through the night, as Zelda opened her eyes, torn away from a dream. She groans, her eyes slightly watered from the abrupt awakening as she pulled the covers off her body and rolled out of bed and onto the wooden floors. She held back a couple of curses as she reached out blindly in the dark to whatever she could grab on. Finding her hand on the now familiar wooden dresser, she pulled herself up. She gave off a yawn as she slowly shuffled through the room, trying to get to the baby and being careful not to crash into anything.

There, the wooden cradle held the horror of Zelda's past couple of days, as it never closed its mouth.

"Shhhh," Zelda whispered, reaching into the cradle and gently picking up the baby. "Mommy is here. It's alright."

The cries died down a little, before the baby started crying it's head off once more. Zelda's head stung from the cries, and she couldn't get the child to hush.

Behind her she heard the door open and a set of quiet footsteps entered the room. Zelda couldn't say anything as a pair of hands took Hylia from her arms, as the sound of cooing started.

"There there child," Uli said, her arms patting Hylia's back. She gently touched her head to the baby's, a soft smile on her face.

The crying slowly died down once more, before it was no more than a couple off gurgles. Seeing her work down, the pregnant woman stepped past Zelda and laid Hylia back into the cradle.

"Sorry for all the trouble," Zelda apologized.

Uli raised her hand up to hush the younger woman.

"Don't fret about it," she replied.

Standing up fully, Uli made her way out of the room.

"I'll need to go heat up some warm milk for Hylia," she said. "Want to come with?"

Zelda pondered at the vibrant pregnant woman, envious to her inner strength. She swallowed the thought, before standing up as well, eyeing her elder curiously.

"I would love to."

The older blonde gave off a gentle smile, as she ushered quietly for Zelda to follow her.

* * *

Zelda felt a little peevish at the sight of Uli feeding the baby. Sure, in reality Hylia wasn't her child but…well just that, she was sure she didn't feel any motherly instincts, but she did feel an obligation of sorts to her.

A small burp interrupted Zelda's thoughts, as Uli patted the baby over he shoulder.

"You make it look simple and easy," Zelda commented, humour in her voice.

Uli looked abashed, and tad embarrassed at the sudden compliment.

"Well, it'll come with experience dear," Uli answered. "I did have the other villagers to help me out with Collin. In fact, I was probably doing considerably worse than you right now."

"I don't believe it," Zelda stated, surprised and disbelief in her voice. "Stop pulling my leg."

"I am not," the older woman giggled. "Collin would cry for the whole day, and I couldn't do anything about that. I think it's a sense of comfort, you see I was very nervous with Collin. You can't show that, or the baby will feel unsafe."

"I feel like I would drop Hylia any time, or leave her starving. I don't have any other older female acquaintances that I can discuss this with."

Except maybe Impa…but she doesn't have a child, so probably not the best option. Zelda inwardly snickered at the thought of Impa raising a baby. Then immediately stopped finding it funny, as Impa would probably teach them to use a sword as soon as they could walk.

"I see, that must be terrible," Uli continued, staring at the contempt face of Hylia. "Where is your husband?"

Zelda didn't know how to answer, as Uli hadn't brought up the topic since Zelda had been recovering. Didn't want to put any potential stress on her guest. But upon watching Zelda struggle to come up with an explanation, she immediately gasped and thought the worse.

"He abandoned you?" Uli asked. "I am so sorry, I should not have said anything-"

"Please it is alright," Zelda interrupted, feeling sheepish. "Yes he did abandon us-"

Uli gave a very depressed expression.

"Nononono, not in that way," Zelda interrupted while flailing her arms about in a non-royal manner. "I was attacked by bandits if you recall, and it was then that he lead them on a chase. He is very lovely, caring, and wouldn't put me in harms way."

Because it was his duty as a knight…yeah, Zelda wasn't going to mention that. Feeling the heat rush to her face, Zelda coughed nervously, and started pouring herself a glass of water. She started drinking it quickly as if it were some alcoholic beverage.

"I see you truly love your husband."

Zelda spluttered, water flying out of her mouth as she was caught unguarded by the sudden comment. She coughed a bit, hitting her chest as she regained her breath.

"Oh my, are you alright?" Uli asked, her face full of concern.

"Yes, yes," Zelda assured her, sitting back up in a proper manner and raising both her hands in a calming manner. "I'm perfectly fine, I was just not expecting you to say it so…bluntly."

"Ah…but I do know the feeling. My Rusl is always out there, defending the village. He'll be taking care of the bandits that attacked you don't worry. But at times I really can't help but worry for him. He's a muscle head him."

"Then when he has free time he is always training with his sword-"

"Or exploring the area like a child-"

"Or picking fights to prove that he is the strongest."

"…No, Rusl doesn't do that. He knows that he'll get a scolding."

"Oh."

"…Your husband sounds egotistical."

Zelda snickered. Link would flip if he were told that. Seeing the younger woman relax from the conversation brought a smile to Uli's face, before she too burst out into a fit of giggles. They were two very strange peas in a pod.

* * *

After putting Hylia to sleep, Zelda lay awake in her bed. She tossed and turned, unable to go back to sleep. The thought about her first impressions of Ordon was nice to say in the least. The townsfolk were friendly, and worked together like one big unit. Like a family. Like a small kingdom.

Zelda thought back to her younger years as a child, about how her father wouldn't talk to her after her mother died. How she grew up alone, not knowing of the outside world until that fateful day where Zant invaded. Only then did she realize her naivety. Thankfully she had Impa and Link, both helping her. She smiled at the peaceful times with the two of them, memories that she would never forget.

But again she asked herself, was she ready to lead? Her father was a great king, but all she has ever done was be invaded. Did she have the trust of her people? How could she get them to accept her as their leader if she couldn't?

Zelda knew that this was a break from work…but she keeps coming back to the fact that she might not be ready. After seeing the unity of this village, she was once again reminded of her naivety. And Hylia…how could she lead her people if she couldn't raise a child.

In many ways, being a mother was like being a queen. One raised a child, the other raised a kingdom. She needed to do both, but how was she to do so?

A cry once again filled the room, and Zelda groaned as she stumbled her way towards Hylia once more, cradling the child.

 _Show confidence, and the child will feel safety_

Zelda cooed the child and patted the child like Uli had done, accepting the warmth from Hylia. The woman closed her eyes, and didn't show her unease, and as if by magic the baby's cries died down until it was soft gurgles. Zelda couldn't resist a warm smile appearing on her face as she stared at her child. Her Hylia. Her 'kingdom'.

"I am honoured that you put your trust in me Hylia."

Hylia gurgled happily, placing her hands on Zelda's face. Yeah Zelda was slowly learning. It's what people call 'baby steps'.

And she was happy with her progress.


	4. A duel of blades, a duel of words

**A/N: So as promised, a chapter for Mother for a Year. Tomorrow will be another update for 'An Angel to Guide Me'.**

* * *

 **Chapter four: a duel of blades, a duel of words**

The day Rusl comes back from the forest, he is bleeding from a head wound and a broken arm. He tells everyone it wasn't a big deal, just carelessness when dealing with some of the loose bandits, but Zelda knows of the man. From Link's stories she came to the conclusion that age was catching up to him.

And she knows that Collin and Uli knows this.

And at the same time, she can't help but worry a bit for Link…wherever he was. It truly frustrated her to no end, that her guide for her holiday hadn't turned up for the past few of weeks.

Today, the younger generation had an outing outside the village in a small meadow. This group consisted of Zelda herself with Hylia, Illia, Talos, Beth, and a fidgeting Collin.

"Engarde Collin!" Talo shouted, rushing forward with a roar, swinging wildly with his wooden sword.

"Wait, Talo!" Collin exclaimed, barely dodging the strike, blocking the next one. "I wasn't ready!"

"Your enemy is not going to wait till your ready," Talo huffed, charging again. "Take this Collin! ULTIMATE TECHNIQUE! SOARING SKY BLADE!"

With an 'impressive' wind up, he threw the blade forward, to which Collin ducked under, a small yelp escaping his lips. The wooden sword soon lost itself amongst the tall grass. Silence filled the meadow, as Talo's stood back up from his throwing position, clearing his throat.

"As expected of my rival, you were able to dodge my ultimate technique."

"Don't worry, I'm sure your enemies would die of laughter either way," Beth muttered, just loud enough for Talo to hear.

He reddened, and Collin looked panicked at Talo's expression. Steam seemed to roll out from his ears, as he balled his fists tightly.

"Collin, we are having a rematch!" he yelled. "Get my sword!"

"B-But you were the one who threw it…"

"Only because you dodge it. Come on, we don't have much time before we go back home."

Sighing, Collin started making his way towards where the wooden blade went, before he was stopped by Zelda, who had already retrieved the sword from the grass without him noticing.

"Here you go Collin," she smiled gently.

"T-Thank you."

"Oi Collin, hurry up!" Talk called out impatiently, swinging his sword wildly. Beth and Ilia both rolled their eyes.

"Hey Zelda!" Ilia called out. "Why don't you show Talo some basics? He seems to be the perfect sparring partner."

Something must have been humourous, because Collin and Talo watched as both Beth and Ilia tried to hide their laughter. Zelda looked at them curiously, raising an eyebrow. She looked back and forth from the boys, before smirking slightly.

"Is that okay with you both? Talo? Collin?"

"It's no fun fighting a girl, come on Collin, pick up your sword."

A small tick appeared in the graceful appearance of Zelda, as she tensed, raising the sword and testing it's weight. She patted the flat side of the blade on her palm a bit, feeling it's texture.

"It'll do," she whispered, and Collin remembered that look.

He paled and started sweating, before quickly making his way to the other two girls who were smirking and waiting for the show to start.

"Where are you going Collin?" Talo complained, pointing his sword at him. "You running away?"

Suddenly another sword found itself pushing his sword away.

"It'll be for a few rounds Talo," Zelda said, trying her best to maintain her emotions.

"We'll have plenty of time."

Now normally, anyone that had any decent situational awareness would have realised they were in a terrible position, but Talo felt confident. He raised his blade, and cheekily smirked.

"I'll let you have the first move," he stated.

Zelda smiled.

"That's awfully gracious of you."

"Well, I want to make this an even fight."

The smile disappeared. There was a blur of motion, and in a spilt second, Talo's world went black.

* * *

It wasn't that she was untrustworthy, but ever since she appeared in that river bleeding with that child of hers, Rusl was suspicious. Clothes to fine for a peasant, he would have thought she was a daughter of a rich merchant, or maybe a lord of some sort. But she could help with house work, and seemed to merge well with the rural town. Despite knowing Zelda is a kind hearted girl, there was something she wasn't telling them. His years of experience could see that she was hiding something.

He took a sip from his cup, looking at the Collin and Zelda from across the dining table. The veteran swordsman had his left arm in a sling, his other hand holding a cup of coffee.

Zelda and Collin were sitting in silence, a dark shadow adorning Zelda's expression. She looked incredibly guilty, and refused to look into the older man's eyes.

"You look cheerful," Rusl commented, peering at Zelda.

"She just got scolded by Talo's mom," Collin explained. "Talo has a huge bruise on his head now."

"I didn't mean to hit that hard," Zelda moaned.

Rusl almost chuckled from the pout that was unusual for the young woman. But decided against it, it wasn't the best idea to further press her guilt.

"So you're good with a blade?" he asked curiously, changing the topic.

Zelda seemed surprised by the sudden question, looking at Rusl. He raised an eyebrow to her when she didn't say anything. Zelda kept quiet, thinking of how to respond.

"I've been learning the art of swordsmanship ever since I could walk."

"Is that so?" Rusl took another sip from his cup, before putting it down onto the table. "Who taught you?"

"A family friend," Zelda replied, thinking to herself, "Though in reality she's more of a nanny…"

"I see," Rusl stated, smiling. "Do I know or them?"

"Her name is Impa," Zelda answered. "She's from…the far east near Gerudo."

Zelda was regal, smart, and beautiful. That much everyone knew. But despite all her perfections, she was a terrible liar, and Rusl saw through it immediately. Though he didn't press it, giving Zelda the benefit of the doubt as he hasn't seen any dangerous aspects to the woman, he did however noted down in his mind to possibly bring up her past. This was his home, and he would prefer a full story from a guest at his house, regardless of how dire their situation might be.

"Of course," he played with Zelda's lie. "The Gerudo women are very talented in their arts, you are very lucky to be taught their ways. Do you usually use a scimitar or a rapier?"

Zelda opened her mouth to answer, but stopped seeing Rush take a slow sip of his drink. His eyes boar into hers, and…was he trying to read her. She stopped and thought of her answer…the Gerudo don't use rapiers, only Hyrulian nobility usually do, as they did not wear armour and a rapier was the easiest sword to carry in self defence. Rusl was no doubt trying to get information from her discreetly. Of course he would, she recently stop using the sling around her arm already, so she was no longer an injured guest needing attention. She was a guest in his home.

"A rapier, I am Hyrulian after all," Zelda answered, smiling back at Rusl.

"Oh, that's an interesting choice in weapon," Rusl continued. "A very common noble's weapon."

"I have a very weak physique, it is not so uncommon for a merchants daughter to be able to defend herself in trying times. Bandits, criminals of similar brethren, one can't underestimate their presence."

Rusl grinned a fake smile. Despite being confident that she was lying, what she said made sense, so he could not call her out for hiding the truth.

"Your father was a merchant?"

"Mother as well."

"What kind of wares did they dwell in?"

"We traded with nobles quite often. Books, clothing, daily accessories for noble women, and the occasional weapon. We had quite a variety. Growing up with nobles in a sense."

Collin watched the two talk back and forth, and despite the contents of the conversation being normal…he got the feeling something was off. The hairs on the back of his neck raised, and cold sweat began to trickle down his back.

"I didn't know one could learn noble mannerisms from being a merchant," Rusl stated. "I must say I'm impressed.

"Well, I must show respect in ones home. It's compulsory in my line of work."

"And forgive me for bringing it up, your husband was a knight right?"

"Yes. The best if I say so myself."

"What's his name? I am an acquaintance with the general of Hyrule's army. I know every name of every knight."

Zelda went quiet. Was he bluffing? His face showed that he was serious, but would a swordsman in a rural town really know that information. Should she just tell the town now about Link? No…that was too embarrassing, she needed Link by her side to shoulder part of the repercussions. Plus there wasn't a guarantee that the townsfolk would necessarily believe her, as she is still practically a stranger…albeit a kind one. She mentality reminded herself to hit Link when she next got the chance. She opened her mouth, as the door was slammed open, revealing Uli heaving a basket of groceries.

Zelda immediately stood up and was by her side in an instant.

"I got that for you," she stated gently slipping the basket into her own arms. The pregnant woman was about to respond, but Rusl was already by her side, arms wrapped gently around her as he directed her to her seat.

"Honey it's alright, you can't strain yourself," Rusl reassured, gently directing Uli to sit down on one of the couches nearby. He began massaging her shoulders, as she leaned back into his embrace.

Rusl looked up at Zelda, who in turn looked away from him. It was clear that he wanted to finish this conversation, but as he opened his mouth, Hylia started crying upstairs. Whether it was due to the cry, or not wanting to be interrogated, Zelda disappeared like a blur up the stairs.

He sighed, and decided to worry about Zelda's past later. For now, his wife's comfort was his priority.

"Mmmmm, that's the spot Dear," Uli complimented. "I don't know how your massages got better with you only using one arm."

* * *

From the thick tree line of the forest a figure walked out, tired, thirsty and on the brink of collapse. But the sheer will and determination of Link pushed him forward. A few bruises, dried up cuts here and there, with a bit of tear in his tunic. By his side Epona followed. He stood at the entrance of his childhood home of Ordon. He was grateful to be back home.

 **A/N: So if you don't know, I'm starting commissions next year. Articles, reviews, fanfics, stories, and even D &D adventures are what I'm offering to write for money. In regard to that, I am offering till the New Year free commissions for anyone, so feel free to pm me or visit my tumblr, my new blog, or even Twitter (all are under HKGlenstid) as I'm going to start using it there. Till tomorrow guys, have a great day!**


	5. Hiatus message

So lots of stuff has happened recently. My girlfriend and I spilt sometime ago (we're still good friends though), University started again, I'm looking for a job and I am really stressed out as it is right now.

I'm also not happy with my way of writing. I started writing fanfics because I love to write. But it's hard to continue writing when I have no love or satisfaction from my own writing skills. My writing style changes very often because I can't find a writing style that has my heart in it.

 **'An Angel to Guide me'** , was a fic that I really wanted others to read. It was originally meant to be a coming of age story of two kids who needed to rely on each other. Hence they are both each other's 'angel'. But I skipped a lot of ideas I had originally wanted to do within the early years. I had really wanted to focus on the journey of Sasuke trying to overcome his trauma with Izumi there beside him. But I wrote in Inoichi, and he had to have a pivotal role because he was Sasuke's counsellor, which kinda downplayed Izumi more than I wanted. Then Izumi was to properly struggle with civilian life, but I really didn't know how to go about it.

I guess in the end, I want to rewrite it, hopefully soon. So there won't be another chapter until I fully rewrite to where I am already in the story.

 **'Mother for a Year'** , was something that I always wanted to try writing. The comedy aspect of raising a child. It was during the time where I was sitting on the couch all day reading Legend of Zelda fanfics, so I decided to write it for that fandom. Sadly I actually have no experience with raising a child (I'm young and single for life), and so a lot of stuff I actually had to research or ask my own mom about. It helped me bond with her, which was nice, as I didn't really get along well with my parents growing up. Due to my lack of knowledge, and I actually titled the story as 'a year', I literally screwed myself over with a limit of what I could write. It's fun, and I will probably continue this one the most.

 **'The Last Summoner'** , was a piece that I thought of when I played League of Legends (obviously). I just simply had the thought of 'what if the League was destroyed'. So I decided to write it. I wanted it to be from an outsiders perspective as well, but I didn't want it to be solely in the shoes of a stranger. So Marcus Crownguard/Du'Couteau was what I went with (both Garen and Katarina had father's with the name Marcus). And I love Darius, so I thought it'll be funny writing him as a grumpy old man. I also wanted a simple journey as well. From point A, to point B. Sadly I screwed it up from the start, and so I wrote myself into a fix. I plan to rewrite it from scratch one day...

* * *

So I hope to get around rewriting most of my stuff. Thank you to those that have supported me. Once my university holiday's start, I'll start writing again.


End file.
